The thoughts of Europe

Slovakian, engineer with a passion for politics, Jàn Figel’ was born in Vranov nad Toplou in 1960. Married with four children, he originates from the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH). After completing university studies in his country, he deepened his knowledge in international public relations at the University of Georgetown (United States), and in European economic integration in Anvers (Belgium). He has been a member of the EU Commission since 2004; at present, he is taking care of education, training, culture and youth. Figel’ has always paid attention to ethic, political, social and religious issues. He is one of the inventors and most important sponsors of 2008 European Year of Intercultural Dialogue. Gianni Borsa interviewed him for SIR Europe. On several occasions, you have said that education and training are decisive for the future of the EU. In a “global” era, more skills and education are needed to live fully as individuals, as citizens, as workers. What are the EU’s main plans and commitments in this area? “Education and training have moved to the very forefront of EU policy-making in recent years, as the Member States strive to introduce measures that will help their citizens make the most of the opportunities available in our increasingly globalised, competitive, knowledge-based society. The European Commission is working closely with the Member States in all areas of education and training. These are just a few of the initiatives we are currently working on: In the area of schools, we are publishing a policy statement, which we call a «Commission Communication», on «Improving Competences for the 21st Century: An Agenda for European Cooperation on Schools» on 3 July 2008. This document aims to make school systems more relevant to pupils’ and employers’ needs. In the area of higher education, our work revolves around three main areas of reform: curricular reform – especially in the Bologna Process, the initiative to simplify Europe’s higher education systems which now encompasses 46 countries -, funding reform and governance reform. Combining the three parts of the «knowledge triangle», research, education and innovation, we are in the process of setting up the European Institute of Innovation of Technology, whose seat will be in Budapest. With its «knowledge and innovation communities», the EIT will be a uniquely European approach to harness excellence in academia, research and business enterprise. This year we welcomed the launch of the European Qualifications Framework, a mechanism that will act as a «translation device» to make qualifications more readable and understandable to employers, individuals and institutions, so that workers and learners can use their qualifications in other countries. As such it will promote the mobility of learners and workers everywhere. The EQF covers all sectors of education, including academic learning, vocational training, informal and non-formal learning. The aim is that by 2012, all new qualifications issued in the EU would feature a reference to one of the eight EQF «reference levels», from those obtained at the end of compulsory education (level 1) to the highest (level 8: doctorate or equivalent)”. When one speaks of new knowledge, one immediately thinks if research. Does the EU really invest in studies, in experiments? Does it support research workers? “The EU invests a lot in Research and Development. The EU budget for the 7-year Framework Programme for Research and Development (2007-2013), is € 53 billion. This represents more than a 50% increase from the previous framework programme. This Programme funds a whole range of projects, which all feature a trans-national element led by excellent teams of researchers. They cover selected priority areas that are in the EU citizens’ interest: health, food, information and communication technologies, and climate change. As regards the support to researchers, the Commission is strongly supporting their mobility. What we want to achieve is a European Research Area (ERA) where knowledge, of which researchers are the human face, circulates freely. That is why we proposed a Partnership to Member States to try to remove all kind of obstacles to researchers’ mobility”. What is the relationship between research and ethics? Between new knowledge and European values? “As research produces new knowledge and technologies, it affects our culture and our behaviour. It may also produce challenges to our ethical values. The Commission considers high ethical standards for research to be of paramount importance, as they reflect our adherence to the ethical values and fundamental rights on which the EU is founded. High ethical standards also add to the quality of research and increase its likely social impact because they stimulate a better alignment of research with social needs and expectations. «Good research» therefore goes hand in hand with «good ethics». The Commission therefore takes various initiatives to bolster high ethics standards in the European Union, for example via funding research on ethics, conducting its own ethical reviews of all proposals that are selected for EC research funding and which raise ethical issues. In this context proposals will not be funded unless they fulfil the EC ethics-related requirements; and supporting research ethics activities in Member States, such as national and local research ethics committees”. One of your most important tasks is culture. In the 27-member EU, which might soon include new member states, can we speak of one single culture? Or should we speak of a “Europe of cultures”? “The best reply to this question is the EU’s motto: «Unity in diversity» The EU is a community of cultures and values built on the principle of respect for cultural diversity. The European identity is strongly rooted in the recognition that we have all multifaceted identities and that this diversity, within our own individual experience as well as in our societies, is our shared richness. Building a united Europe has arguably always been a cultural project since its very beginning, and all through its integration process the Union has gradually extended its policy areas from its original agenda focussed on tangible domains to more intangible areas. I truly believe that culture should be given a central place in the European construction. This is precisely the ambition of the major proposals of the Communication – a policy statement – adopted by the Commission on 10 May 2007 on a «European agenda for culture in a globalizing world». This was later endorsed by the Education, Youth and Culture Council on 16 November 2006 and by the European Council in December 2007, so it has full Member State support. This strategic document spells out a comprehensive vision of the key role played by culture at the heart of the European integration process and calls for a stronger cultural component in our external relations. The Commission is working closely with the Member States to implement the Agenda”. In this 2008 dedicated to intercultural dialogue, is the wealth of the many “diversities” of Europe coming to the fore? In the area of culture, of welfare, not to mention the many traditions, languages … “Intercultural dialogue is a transversal topic that touches a number of important fields at European and national, regional and local level. The «cultural» side of the expression means a way of life (the anthropological view of culture) and is by no means limited to arts and heritage, or to «Culture» with a capital C. It naturally includes areas like multilingualism, interfaith dialogue, workplace, migration and integration, the media, minorities, youth and education. Intercultural dialogue is also about dialogue between generations, between traditions. A Europe-wide public opinion survey that we carried out in November 2007, revealed that a remarkably high number (83%) of EU citizens agreed on the benefits of intercultural contacts, and two-thirds were of the opinion that family (cultural) traditions should be kept by the younger generations. Combining the two views, 55% expressed an attitude that suggests a preference towards cultural diversity, with a strong preference towards keeping cultural roots alive as well. How is this multitude of diversities reflected in practice during the European Year? The projects and events that are being carried out as part of the Year, whether of a festive nature or related to policy debate, mirror the wide variety of aspects in intercultural dialogue. And since intercultural dialogue features in the European Agenda for Culture that I just mentioned, as well as in our main funding programme in the field of culture until 2013, the issue of intercultural dialogue will be on stakeholders’ and policy makers’ minds for a long time after the end of the European Year!”. The positive contribution of inter-religious dialogue in Europe has been emphasised on several occasions recently. Mutual knowledge and respect as well as cooperation between different religious confessions can be one of the pillars for a united, peaceful Europe. How is the relationship between the EU and the religious community being shaped? “The Commission has long been engaged in the field of «Dialogue with Churches, Religions and Communities of Conviction» within the framework of the BEPA, the Bureau of European Policy Advisers, and through a series of meetings between the Commission President and the representatives of religions and communities of conviction. This year, the traditional meeting of the President of the Commission and the President of the European Parliament with representatives of religions and communities of conviction took place on 5 May 2008. As far as the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue is concerned, inter-religious dialogue is an important aspect of intercultural dialogue in the context of the increasing cultural and religious diversity of Europe. In fact, European citizens have multi-layered identities: religions, beliefs or philosophical convictions represent one of these layers. The dimension which should be common to all of us and which should make dialogue possible is an active, participatory citizenship. This is the umbrella which brings us together and which represents the space where we can live our other layers of identity in a free and open way. Let me finally add that one of the «Brussels Debates» held in the context of the European Year was dedicated to this issue (on 14 May 2008)”. The young are expressly mentioned in your portfolio. The young – everyone says so – are the future, including the future of the EU. In the EU policies, in the decisions taken by Strasbourg and Brussels, how much are the needs of the young taken into account? “We strive to take young people’s views on board and to listen to them through the «structured dialogue» which is implemented by the European Commission in co-operation with the Member States, the European Youth Forum and the National Youth Councils. It involves a large diversity of young people and a broad scope of different youth organisations. We introduced this new way of working because we want to make full participation of young people in society a reality and because we are convinced that continuous contact between policy makers and young people contribute to make youth policies sustainable. The structured dialogue is organised in thematic cycles. During 2007, the thematic priorities were «Inclusion» and «Diversity» and in 2008, they are «Intercultural Dialogue» and «Future challenges for young people»”. What are, in your opinion, the EU’s measures that most effectively cater to the expectation of the young Europeans? “The Youth in Action Programme is the privileged instrument to implement and put into practice the European cooperation on youth policies. The Youth in Action Programme funds projects which are designed to encourage a sense of active European citizenship of young people and encourages young people to become more involved in democratic processes. It promotes non-formal learning and mobility and supports a large variety of activities, such as youth exchanges, youth initiatives, voluntary service and training and networking for youth workers and youth organisations. Youth in Action gives young people the opportunity to take part in the development of society in general and of the European Union in particular, by stimulating intercultural learning, by supporting a sense of belonging to the European Union, and by promoting the fundamental values of the Union among young people”.